The Last Alpha
by JustAnEnigma
Summary: They were trained from birth to be the perfect hunters. Now, only one remains. But, can there be any humanity left in the heart of a born soldier? Tune in to find out.
1. Introduction: Part 1

**A/N: So I was bored one day, and this little gem popped into my head. The introduction is a bit lengthy and will be divided into two parts for ****convenience's sake. The Intro will be from the POV's of multiple people, but the main story will be from the perspective of 1 or 2 characters.**

**Also, this is my first Fan-Fiction, so make of it what you will.**

* * *

_Vacuo Nation Hospital: 17 Years Ago_

"You sure this is the right one?" The hooded figure said, turning to his co-conspirator.

His partner only shrugged, "Hell is I know, all these little shits look the same to me," Carefully she reached down and lifted up the sleeping infant, careful not to wake it.

"You're not sure?" The first figure asked, "Well you better get sure, last thing we need if for this kid to end up dead before he even reaches the...school," He finished, putting large air-quotes around the term "school". His partner only laughed. She read the serial number off of tag wrapped around the infant's tiny foot. A quick check from her partner confined that they had the infant they were looking for.

"Happy now?" She asked, rolling her eyes "Dust, you can be sooo annoying,"

"Hey don't blame for wanting to protect our asses," he exclaimed trying to keep his voice low, "I don't even want to think about what the boss would do to us if we came back with the wrong kids,"

"You worry too much," The woman shrugged. Her partner just seemed to get angrier at her carelessness,

"Cool down, let's just get this kid to the truck, then we just come back, get the last one, and quick as a whip we're out of here,"

"Fine," the man agreed looking around the darkened nursery, "this place gives me the creeps anyways. I hate hospitals,"

The woman laughed, "I'll add that to the list, now come on," The two figures walked out of the nursery's emergency exit, which had "conveniently" been left ajar, and into the back of a large white truck parked outside. The trailer was large and simple. A few hanging lamps illuminating the rows and rows of nailed down cribs, all but two of which were filled with the sleeping forms of newborn children. A couple of tacky mobiles, and it would have all but matched the nurseries these children had been taken from.

The two figures deposited the child in one of the empty cribs, then exited the truck, going back for the last infant. After a quick search of the remaining children, the two figures found the one they were seeking out.

"Can I ask you something?" the man asked timidly.

"What?" the woman sighed, lifting the sleeping infant from their crib.

The man, ignoring his partners obvious disinterest, continued, "Do you ever feel like what we're doing is...you know...wrong? I mean with the stupid brown robes, and the snatching of sleeping kids, and that big white cliché outside," The woman turned to face him, her hood doing little to obscure her absolute indifference.

"No," she responded flatly, already walking towards the door, "Far as I'm concerned, we're doing these kids a favor. Whoever is willing to sell their own child for some money is probably going to be a crappy parent anyways. Besides, it's not like we're taking them at random. Each of these children have been screened for the proper mental and physical traits for training, it's all for the good of the kingdom," Her point made, she looked back towards her partner, the man could be so silly sometimes.

"Well, when you put it like that," he began, nodding.

"Exactly," his partner finished, "Now come on, we drop these kids off, then I got a little... reward... for you back home," she gave a little sashay to emphasize her point. The man smiled and, previous moral dilemma forgotten, eagerly followed her outside.

* * *

_Somewhere on the coast, Vacuo: 17 years ago_

Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, an in-construction school for young boys and girls who possessed particular talents in the art of combat. In time, this school would produce Huntsmen and Huntresses capable of rivaling those of Vale's prestigious Beacon Academy. These young children would help defend the men and women of Remanent from the darkness that sought to overwhelm them.

Well... that was the official story anyways.

Nursemaid Waltina Whit walked through the thin steel halls of the school, or rather, the underside of the school. Just another ordinary day in her life. Making her way to the end of the hall, the raven-haired nurse opened the large steel doors to reveal a nursery full of young babies, all of them just under a year old and already training to be Rangers, an elite group of hunters who were trained from birth to be the ultimate warriors. Passing by one of her fellow nurses-a young man sporting a mass of black curls on his head-she asked about which children required care.

"Ranger 673 is about ready for her feeding," The other nurse replied, looking rather tired, "I caught 1002 crying earlier though, so refrain from feeding him until dusk," Waltina sighed, she hated denying the children food but rules were rules. If you cried, your feedings are reduced. Most of the infants had managed to pick up on that early, but every now and again, another child cried for one reason or another, and they couldn't really make exceptions. The general had said it himself, a creature of Grimm would not bow to a show of weakness, so neither shall they.

"Thank you Florence," Waltina replied, "Now go get some rest, you look exhausted," The male nurse, Florence, nodded appreciatively and walked towards the door.

Just before reaching the door, Florence, remembering something important turned back towards Waltina, "I almost forgot," he began, "We had 5 more deaths today, and Ranger 78 was brought to the infirmary for a high fever,"

Once again, Waltina sighed, "Which of the children died?" She called back.

"Let's see, we lost 556, 1010, 421, 326, and 1," He called back counting on his fingers. Waltina nodded her thanks, and turned back towards the children as Florence slipped out the door, leaving her alone.

"I have seen the death-hours of far to many infants," Waltina began, going about her work. As she filled another bottle with formula, she began to question what was killing what appeared to be perfectly healthy infants. She knew what it was, of course. Looking down at the white liquid in the bottle, she glared.

The nurses knew that the formula they fed the babies wasn't ordinary. While they superiors refused to admit exactly what it was, they had admitted that it was a mixture of dust and other chemicals that were supposed to aid the bone development of the children as well as making them more durable. It had worked, for the most part. However, some infants had suffered reactions to the cocktail, and would end up dying. Some had died early on, but every now and then, one infant would react to it as well. As far as the medical staff knew, it wasn't a painful passing, but at the same time, there was nothing they could really do for the child. Waltina hated knowing that she was playing a part in their deaths, but she knew that the concoctions would be necessary for the children when training started.

She was right.

* * *

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Living Quarters: 14 years ago, 6:00 am_

Howard Domnhald walked through the corridors of the Ranger Training Center. Clutching hold of a large stack of books, the balding, scholarly man counted the numbers on each door. Arriving at number 237, the middle-aged instructor adjusted his glasses before walking in.

The room was as plain as one could expect of a bedroom. The walls were all the same, dull beige tone, brightened only by the few pictures of various Grimm that Domnhald had smuggled in at its occupants request. Other than those, the room was bare, the pure white carpet doing little to brighten the room. Tucked in the corner was a single, twin-sized bed, a small wooden closet stood next to it. Of course, Howard wasn't here to admire the scenery. He was here to teach. Glancing towards the small table at the center of the room, his eyes were drawn to his pupil.

A young, three-year old girl sat at the edge of the table, her face a blank slate. Hearing the door open, the child swung her gray eyes around to assess the new figure. Seeing her mentor there, the girl nodded, a smile just barely showing up on her pale face.

"Good morning, Mister Domnhald," she said, not getting up from her seat.

"Good morning, 237," Domnhald replied, sighing. The girl shouldn't be smiling, he constantly told her not to smile, cry, or show any emotion whatsoever, but the girl continued to ignore the orders. Just the previous day, Domnhald had to beat her for giggling during his instructions. The bruises were still evident on her wrist from where his ruler had made contact. Looking towards 237, Domnhald gestured to his mouth, and nodded contentedly when the girl, picking up on the message, let her smile fade back to her usual stoic demeanor. He didn't like to hit his pupils, or in this case pupil, but knew he had a job to do. So he often gave out warnings instead of outright beating the child like some of his colleagues.

Sitting down at the other end of the table, Domnhald opened one of his larger books, "Let's begin with Grimm Studies today," he said.

"Yes sir," 237 responded, pulling out a slightly smaller version of the same book (a student's version, as opposed to Domnhald's teacher's edition). Before Domnhald could continue however, the girl bowed her head, "I am sorry for my conduct during yesterday's lesson, sir, it will not happen again," Domnhald was glad the girl didn't see the smirk on his face at the child's antics, he had to teach by example, of course.

"That's quite alright, 237," he responded, letting his face harden again, "I assume you have learned your lesson, and it will not happen again," The girl nodded her head and sat up straighter in her chair, brushing a stray lock of blond hair from her face.

"Never again, sir," 237 responded.

Domnhald nodded, "Good, now back to the lesson. Now, do you recall the main weak point of a Nevermore?"

The girl grunted, trying to remember the previous day's lesson on the large bird-like Grimm. After a moment, she responded, "Is it the-"

Domnhald cut her off, "I did not ask for a question. I wanted an answer," he scolded the girl on her tone, "Now, go back and phrase it as an answer,"

"Sorry, sir," 237 apologized before restating her answer, "The neck, sir," She said sounding far more confident this time.

Domnhald nodded, "Correct,"

The lesson would continue like that for several hours. Domnhald would lecture the Ranger-in-training on various topics, including Grimm Studies, writing, arithmetic, and history. Occasionally he would stop to ask a question, to which the girl would quickly respond. He was impressed at his young ward's memory, even at such a young age. Of course, he would never show it. If she grew too confident, it would be bad for everyone involved, Domnhald included. The lessons ended at about 6 pm, at which Domnhald would conclude lessons, tell the girl what to study for next time, pick up his book, and leave. Before he left, Domnhald turned towards the girl and, making sure she was not looking, silently nodded in approval.

She would go on to do great things.

* * *

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Headmaster's Office: 12 Years Ago_

General Robert Forrester glanced out of his office window at the labyrinth that comprised his school. It had taken years of work to get the King to support the building of a school for elite super-soldiers, and the process had not been without its flaws, but now he was headmaster of a school of over 900 students, all of whom were due to start physical training soon. His staff had been instructed to be ruthless to the children, and with any luck, Forrester hoped that the harsh conditions would bring out a new breed of soldier. A soldier that could-

"General Forrester, sir" Forrester grimaced as his thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Yes," Forrester replied calmly, turning to face the new arrival. Forrester didn't so much mind his first assistant as he did the woman who was almost always with him. As Forrester turned to look at the two hooded figures, he noticed each of them carrying rather large stacks of boxes that obscured their faces (a job which the hoods didn't really do well).

Before his preferred assistant could respond, the other one decided to make her presence known, "We got deliveries for you, boss,"

Forrester nodded, "I'm well aware, now please set those down in the corner over there," Forrester pointed to one end of the room, then watched his two blinded assistants place the boxes on the opposite side of the room. He sighed to himself, but let the mistake slide, it wasn't too terribly important where the boxes went, "I'm assuming these are the new uniforms," he asked, gesturing to the two stacks in the corner.

"Yes sir," the male figure replied, pulling a list from the robes, "945 long shirts, summer vests, and night-clothes of varying colors," he began, reading from a list, Forrester nodded in approval before the man continued, "505 pairs of plaid girl's combat skirts, and 440 pairs of grey boy's battle trousers."

Forrester paused here, "Wait, say that last part again," He asked.

The man repeated, "505 pairs of combat skirts and 440 pairs of battle trousers,"

Forrester's hand was quick to meet his face, "So tell me, who put in this order?" He said, removing his hand from his face. The man raised his hand. Forrester made a mental note to change how he ranked his assistants. "Then, tell me," he continued, trying to contain his anger, "how many boys do we have at this school?"

The woman pulled out her scroll from her robe. She was first to respond, her nervousness edging its way into her voice, "441... sir"

Forrester slammed his hand down onto his chair leg, "Bingo! We have a winner!" he shouted.

The woman quickly turned to her partner, "Why did you order 440 pairs of pants?"

"You told me to round," he replied innocently.

"Up!" she replied, cursing her partner's stupidity.

"But, I thought one to four rounds down" he replied. If looks could kill, the look Forester gave the man would be equivalent to a shotgun to the face. In fact, Forester could of sworn he kept a weapon in here somewhere.

"So here's what we're going to do," Forester said, adopting a cheerful demeanor scarier than when he was angry, "We can't afford to buy many more uniforms, and we all know those assholes at the factory only ship in bulk, so you two are going to take one of those combat skirts to the nurses, and have them adjust it for a boy, then you are going to give these to the students. If the boy who gets the skirt is beaten to death by his classmates, then you two are going to join him. Understand?"

"Yes, sir!" both figures responded at once, taking the boxes and running before Forester could consider replacing them. Forester, in the meantime, was left to his thoughts, one particular one running through his head.

_I need new assistants._


	2. Introduction: Part 2

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Outdoor Track: 10 Years Ago_

"_It's a good day"_ Regina Nottap thought to herself. It was early morning, the sun was up, and the day was warm. Perfect day to just sit back and relax.

To bad she had work.

"Come on you ladies," she screamed at the passing hoard of 7 year olds, "Get moving, last one finished has to clean the dining hall tonight" From the back of her jeep, Nottap could see the kids begin to speed up, and chuckled as she felt her driver easily keep pace with the center of the crowd. Just another day of training at the School for the Gifted, or as she liked to call it "Mole City". Driving through the mass of building material that made up the "construction site" of the hunting school, Nottaps job was to oversee the physical training of the schools "students". Right now, she was making sure no one was slacking off on the morning run. Unlike some of the more scholarly teachers here, Nottap pulled no punches when training these kids. They would thank her in the future

The daily regime consisted of a morning run, an hour at the gym, breakfast, classes and lunch, combat and dust training against both simulated Grimm and other students, an evening run, dinner, then an hour to study before lights out (students were not assigned homework, but there really wasn't anything else to do in the rooms). The running course was a 4 mile stretch through the cover-up construction site for the school. If at anytime during training the students slacked off, they were subjected to 15 lashes in front of the student body, and did not receive either breakfast or dinner.

Nottap was lying in the back of the jeep when she noticed a dust cycle rolling up from behind her. The driver was most likely from the jeep watching the children at the back of the group, come to report a student who had collapsed or slacked off.

Sure enough, she was right. Lifting the visor off his helmet, the driver reported a student had collapsed at the very back of the pack and asked for orders.

"You know the drill, sergeant," Nottap said, "Leave him there. When he gets back, it's 15 lashes. If he doesn't return, send some guards to look for him.

"Yes ma'am," the cyclist said, returning to his jeep. Patton went back to laying her reclined position, listening to her driver scold a child who had begun to slow down.

"Yes sir-ee, it is a very good day,"

* * *

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Pain Resistance Training Room: 9 Year Ago_

Ranger 124 was alone, and he was nervous. The young, red-haired boy was alone in the forest, without a weapon. Walking as he was, he was the perfect target for creatures of Grimm to just swoop down and finish him off. He knew how this part went, and he hated every minute of it. He had been doing this for three years now, and he knew the drill. That still didn't make what was about to happen any easier.

A rustling in the bushes drew his attention.

"Hello," he called out, readying himself for battle. The only response was further rustling.

124 continued, putting on a brave face "I'm warning you, come on out or I'll drag you out," The rustling continued. It was at this point that 124 realized that it was getting louder and louder as it drew near. A howl made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He knew what was coming.

Beowulves.

The young Ranger-in-training attempted to bring up his aura to protect himself from the approaching foes, but it wouldn't go up. Desperately, he tried again and again, each time meeting no success. He couldn't even summon up a trickle to protect himself. He could hear the rustling getting louder and louder.

With the desperation of a drowning man, 124 tried once more to bring up his aura. Still no dice. He tried to run, but found the foliage to thick for him. He was completely trapped. This is where he had to make his stand.

As the rustling reached the bushes right outside 124's position, he surged forward, ready to destroy the first beowulf he saw. Thing was, none emerged. Instead, all that appeared was a small white rabbit.

124 took a deep breath as he let his nerves settle. This was weird, he should have just seen a bunch of Beowulves, what gave? No sooner did he ask than he felt a sharp pain envelope him as a Beowulf grabbed him in its jaw. The young trainee cried out as he felt the pressure on his torso growing stronger. The world was starting to go black.

Wait... that last part wasn't normal. He had been through pain training before, he never died. This was just to prepare the students for injuries they would receive during actual combat. So they didn't feel them. He was going to wake up in a room full of machines that contained his fellow Rangers, throw up into a trash can, and go about the rest of his day. However, as the world began to get darker, he realized something was wrong. Why wasn't he waking up? Why was the pain fading? What was going on? The last thing he heard before blacking out was a single voice.

"We lost 124"

* * *

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Hallways: 7 years ago_

Today was a big day.

General Forrester was walking down the hallway of the school towards the faculty entrance. Nurse Whit flanked him. It was strange, but for some reason it was requested that the two of them go to greet their guest personally. The two walked in an awkward silence, it was a well-known fact that Nurse Whit didn't approve of the pain training procedures Forrester endorsed, and the two had a bit of a falling out over it.

As the two colleagues approached the door, they were met by a crowd of large men in black suits, all of whom quickly scanned for any sort of weapon either of the two might carry. Confident that they were clean, the men opened the door to admit a rather rotund man in a fancy black and white striped suit. Engraved on the man's left breast pocket was his family's crest. The crest of Vacuo.

"King Glass," Forrester said, saluting his king as Nurse Whit gave a slight bow.

"Pleasure to meet you General," King Glass said, taking hold of the generals free hand in a rather tight handshake before doing the same the Nurse Whit, "As well of you, Madame Whit,"

"Thank you, sir," Nurse Whit said.

"I assure you both are well," Glass said the faculty members, both of whom nodded, "Good, now, shall we be off?"

"Of course sir, the auditorium is this way," Forrester said leading his King, Nurse Whit, and the large crowd of royal bodyguards down the halls.

As the walked down the hallways, Glass spoke up, "As I am sure you know, I plan to start allowing admissions for aspiring Ranger's as young as 10,"

"Of course sir," Forrester said, "We received your message. And even had we not, the completion of the above ground school tipped us off that something was going on,"

King Glass gave a hearty laugh, "Yes, I suppose it would," he replied, "However, there is another matter I wish to discuss with you,"

Forrester nodded, "Of course sir,"

Glass continued, "I discussed it with my advisors, and we believe that the pain resistance training you give your students, while affective, would be a bit dangerous if preformed on students who have not had the same preparation as you current ones."

Forrester shifted awkwardly, "And w-what would you have us do about this, your liege," he asked, slightly nervous.

"We would prefer if you discontinued the pain resistance training on both you current and incoming students," Glass finished. Forrester noticed that Nurse Whit seemed to become considerably happier when she heard this.

Forrester, for one, was livid with his king. He wanted to turn around and slap Glass, the yell at him for telling him what to do with his program. He wanted to tell him that meddling in affairs one knows nothing about is a gross mistake, but he didn't. Partly because Glass was at least trying to be polite, and partly because angering one's king tended to end horribly. "Absolutely.. s-sir." Forrester said, trying to keep himself calm.

"Good," Glass said with a smile as they arrived at the auditorium. Glass gestured for Whit and Forrester to follow as he began through the doors to the auditorium. The plan was simple, they would enter through the back doors that led behind the auditorium stage. Forrester would announce the King's arrival, and Glass would enter and make his announcement of new students to the current student body. However, before Glass ascended the steps to the stairs, he turned around.

"Nurse Whit, remind me. Didn't you graduate medical school earlier this year," Nurse Whit froze, and nodded. She had indeed used her time off over the years to become a certified physician, though she had yet to receive a medical license, or the right to be called a "doctor".

"Good," Glass continued, "You are the new head of the medical department, Doctor," Before either Forrester or Whit could question their King, he strode up the stairs, and they had no choice but to follow. Following the plan, Forrester stepped onto the stage and looked out towards his students, all of whom stared back, silent and grim-faced.

Taking a few breaths to calm himself, Forrester continued, "Attention students, today, our school is honored the host the man that you have all been trained to fight for. A man who's courage, compassion, and i-intelligence," Forrester prayed no one heard him stutter, "make up everything Vacuo is. Please welcome his Royal Highness, King Tidus Glass of Vacuo," Glass stepped onto the stage, and every student bowed towards their king.

Taking the podium from Forrester with a nod and a smile, Glass spoke, "Stand," he commanded, and the students stood at attention, "Thank you. It is my great honor today to come to this amazing school under the ground. You are the chosen ones, the boys and girls hand-picked to fight Vacuo's menaces, both near and far." Glass stopped as, on command, the students saluted their king, "Thank you. However, it has come to our attention that you will need help to fight the growing threat of Grimm. As a result, the kingdom of Vacuo has opted to admit a whole new breed of Rangers, who will forever on be known as Betas. You will be called Alphas, and will be expected to act as class leaders for the new students, who will be of your age." The Alpha Rangers, as they were now called, nodded, much to Glass' surprise. Forrester smirked as he realized Glass was expecting an uproar, not silent agreement. But that's not how Ranger's were trained to act. Glass, however continued unfazed, "However, we also find it necessary to prove your loyalty to the crown above all else," Where was he going with this? "As a result, we have issued a final exam of sorts. Your orders, young Rangers, are to kill each faculty member in the school, except for the one's standing behind me."

As if on cue, Forrester noticed Nurse Whit run out from back stage and take cover behind him. Forrester on the other hand was just frozen I abject terror. This psychopath did not just order his students to kill his faculty, did he? Forrester was just glad he had sent off his two assistants for the day.

"Your exam starts now," Glass said, smiling, "now go," With a wave of his hand, the students were off.

The carnage was horrible each and every one of the faculty members were killed, while many knew how to defend themselves, they stood no chance against the school's overwhelming number of well-train and disciplined super-soldiers. The entire staff was killed at the cost of 30 students. New faculty were ready to arrive almost instantly, of course, but the process of cleaning up the school would take weeks to preform. Walking through the hallways of the school, their steely gray walls painted crimson with the blood of the men and women he commanded, Forrester fell to his knees.

"This had to be done," he assured himself, trying his damnedest to hold back the contents of his lunch, "This had to be done for-" Once again he found himself saying what he had always told his faculty when they complained about the student's harsh treatment. Only he wasn't really sure if he believed it this time...

"For the glory of Vacuo,"

* * *

_Vacuo Hunting School for the Especially Gifted, Infirmary: 2 years ago_

Doctor Waltina Whit settled into her chair, just another day at Vacuo. Peaceful, quiet, the perfect place to stop and think. An Beta might show up later, complaining that one of the Alphas had just kicked their ass, or and Alpha got hurt on a mission or fiddling with their weapons. Maybe someone is feeling sick. Nothing too major all in all. Just a calm little day.

Boy did she wish.

Another nurse ran into her room, "Three more Alphas just came in and we're losing 23," she shouted.

Waltina put her hands into her hands, this whole thing had started last year, when someone in the upper echelons of the administration got the idea to inject the Alphas with the same cocktail they were fed as babies in order to accelerate their muscle growth. The plan had worked, too well. The Alphas had shown incredible muscle growth in within a year of the injections, but now things were going terribly, terribly wrong. Earlier in the year, an Alpha was rushed in suffering from several muscle hernias and internal hemorrhaging. The workout routines of the Rangers combined with the muscle accelerator had caused the muscles to start poking through the other tissue or damage blood vessels. The nursing staff had tried to save them, but by the time it was caught, it was already to late, as the Alphas did not complain about pain due to the pain resistance training. Now, the usual stoic demeanor of the Alphas was shattered as the remainder lay on hospital beds, writhing in pain.

Standing up, Waltina turned to the nurse who had reported the news, "Alpha 23 is a goner, just try to make her comfortable, get the other Alphas to beds now and begin assessment on them immediately," she ordered.

The nurse nodded, "Yes ma'am," they ran back out towards the infirmary floor. At that very moment, Waltina felt a light vibration in her right pocket. Removing her scroll, she noticed that it was a messaged from Headmaster Forrester, no doubt wanting to discuss the recent situation with the Alphas. One look at the contents was all it took for her to figure out her guess was correct. Putting her scroll away, Waltina ran off towards the Headmaster's office, informing the other nurses and doctors where she was going.

Within minutes, she had arrived at the Headmaster's office. Opening the door, she noticed that the office was fuller than usual. Forester sat at his usual space, his two assistants flanking him. The new head of physical development and head of education sat across the room from him.

"Good, you arrived," Forrester said. The general had seen better days. Ever since the faculty change, the general had seemed much older, his skin had become quite wrinkled, and his once auburn hair hand turned completely gray, "What news do you have of the Alphas,"

Waltina shook her head, "It doesn't look good," she said, fighting to keep her voice steady, "We've lost 20 just today, and there aren't many left," The room grew even more somber than it already was.

"What do we do, sir?" the education director, a young man in a suit and tie, asked.

Forrester put his head in his hands, "We do the only thing we can do," he stated, sounding on the verge of tears, "We try to save as many as we can, the survivors can be combined with the Betas if need be,"

Waltina did not like to see her boss this way. They might disagree at times, but she hated seeing the normally proud general looking so weak and helpless. It was at that moment that she remembered something, "There is one," she said. The room went so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"What did you say?" Forrester asked, head rising from his hands.

Waltina continued, "One of the Alphas, 627, I believe, came in a few weeks ago for a damaged wrist, when we were bandaging it, we noticed a hernia beginning to form on his arm, and began treatment. His condition is starting to improve, but in order to fully heal, he would need major surgery,"

Forrester slammed his hand to his desk, "Shift all available nursing staff to Alpha 627 immediately," he ordered, voice returning to its normal commanding tone, "We need to keep that child alive,"

"Yes, sir," Waltina responded, leaving the room quickly. She needed to get word to her nurses quickly. As hopeful as she was that she could save the remaining Alphas, she was realistic enough to realize that the chances of any of them surviving were slim to none. Deep down, she knew this boy would be the last of his kind.

The last Alpha.

* * *

**A/N: And there's the intro folks, hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will be posted up sometime this week, and should be a but shorter than these last two. Until then, tell me what you think of the story, and have a happy New Year.**


	3. Chapter 1

**A/N: Well, it's a bit late, but here's Chapter 1. You would not believe how hard it was to find a proper way to start this chapter. I also edited the summary little and genre tags a little. The last one didn't really catch the essence of what I want this story to be.**

**So anyways, without further ado, here you go.**

**Oh yeah, almost forgot. I don't own RWBY, Monty Oum and RoosterTeeth do, please support the official release. Okay, now lets go.**

* * *

_Beacon Academy, Courtyard: Present Day_

It was a cold, snowy night in Vale, the city streets were still bustling with men and women trying to join the festivities of the Vytal Festival, or just attempting to get home. However, in the city's legendary Beacon Academy, everything was silent. The grounds of the legendary hunter training school lay dark and empty, the only sign of life being the occasional small animal trying to find shelter from the pervading wind and cold.

There was a reason for this utter lack of habitation, of course. One of the common events of the annual Vytal Festival was the Vytal Tournament between the students of finest schools located within the four regions of Remnant: Vale, Atlas, Mistral, and Vacuo. However, tradition demanded that a ball be thrown for the students of the four schools on the night before the tournament began. It was for this reason that the students of Beacon and elsewhere were packed inside Beacon's cafeteria, which was presently being used as a dance hall. A casual passerby, if he were to get close enough, might even be able to hear the music emanating from the other side of the fancy brick walls. This sound was only intensified as a red-haired girl stepped out of the building.

Looking out over the snowy landscape in front of her, Ruby Rose shut the door behind her, drowning out most of the bombastic music within. Brushing some snow off of her red dress, she set off towards her dorm. She was quite tired, and wanted nothing more than to lay down and sleep. Only her common sense prevented her from lying down in the snow. Just a few more minutes, and she'd be in her warm, cozy, precariously perched bed.

"Arragh!"

A shout of pain broke Ruby from her sleepy trance. It hadn't been very loud, but with the night as quiet as it was, it was rather easy to hear. Her bed forgotten, Ruby turned to investigate the sudden outburst.

Rounding the corner of a dorm, onto Beacon's training grounds, Ruby found the source of the noise. A crowd of men and women, all appearing around the age of an average Beacon student, stood around the edge of the circle used for sparing. None of them had seemed to notice Ruby yet. From her position, Ruby could just barely make out around five figures locked in a heated brawl. Four of the figures surrounded the fifth, who was had their hands up in a wrestler's stance. Through the dark, Ruby could also make out another person being carried out of the circle by two more people, one of their arms hanging limply at their side.

Ruby was ready to make her presence known and ask what was going on, when suddenly one of the figures charged at the figure in the center, one arm raised to strike at the figure's head. Without breaking stance, the central figure dodged to the left and, with their right arm, swept their attacker's feet out from underneath them, sending them sprawling onto the snowy ground. Two more figures, one on each side of the defender, attempted to charge them. Leaping into the air, the defender brought their fist down on the nearest attacker's head. Before the attacker could even fall, the figure put their hand behind them and pushed, sending them at their conspirator. The other attacker dodged their falling partner only to be met with a swift foot to the stomach. As the figure crumpled to the ground, the defender turned towards their final assailant. The final assailant proved to be more competent than the others, delivering several blows to the defender's body before being grabbed and thrown from the ring, directly at Ruby.

With a short yelp, Ruby jumped out of the way. Looking up, she saw several more people enter the circle, arms raised. Standing up, Ruby turned to leave and tell Ozpin, the school's headmaster, what was going on.

"Hey, you're not from our school," Ruby turned to face the new voice, which just so happened to be the figure that was thrown from the ring a few moments prior, a short, dirty blond-haired boy with brown eyes. Looking over at Ruby, he flashed a quick smile before picking himself off the ground. Ruby felt her face redden as a light blush formed on her cheeks.

"Um..." Ruby stuttered, instinctively taking a step away from the boy, "I-I guess not?"

"Well you don't need to sound so unsure about it," the boy replied, flattening out his hair, "Do you attend Beacon, or are you visiting like us?" He gestured to the crowd of people,"

"Oh," Ruby said, trying to sound more confident than last time, "Yeah, I go here,"

The boy smiled, "Really, you look a bit young to be a student here, no offense," he said.

Ruby chuckled, "Yeah, I got in a few years early,"

"Huh," the boy said, "That's pretty cool,"

Ruby smiled before realizing something, "Actually," she said curiously, "Where are you from,"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," the boy said, holding out his hand, "I'm 555-but you can call me Fiver, everyone does," Ruby took his hand and shook it quickly before withdrawing her hand, Fiver did the same before continuing, "I'm from Vacuo,"

"Oh," Ruby replied, slightly confused at "Fiver's" numerical name, "My partner Weiss was actually wanted to meet you guys a few days ago," It wasn't a lie, Weiss had been trying to see the students as they arrived, though other events had tied the teams hands.

"Well sorry we missed her," Fiver responded.

"Yeah, she's been trying to meet the hunters from every school, but she's been really interested in your kingdom's because they haven't sent many hunters for a while,"

"Well, I wouldn't call us 'hunters'" Fiver replied, rubbing the back of his head.

Ruby tilted her head at Fiver "Well, what would you call yourselves," she said with a slight chuckle.

"Well, you see, we're a little different from hunters," Fiver said, gesturing at the large crowd, who was beginning to part for some strange reason, "Where we're from, they call us ran-HURK!"

Whatever Fiver was going to say was interrupted as a rather large figure grabbed him by the throat. Ruby jumped back in shock. The new arrival was tall, maybe around 6 feet, with dark brown hair and green eyes. Ruby wanted to say it was a guy, but one thing threw her off.

"_What guy wears a skirt?" _she thought. Indeed, the new arrival was wearing what looked to be a combat skirt, similar in many ways to the uniform skirts female students at Beacon had to wear. What made it stranger was the fact that everyone else there, Ruby excluded, were wearing heavy winter clothing, while this person wore only the skirt and a long-sleeved shirt.

Ruby was interrupted from her thoughts when the new arrival, definitely a boy, if his voice was any indication spoke.

"Were you about to say something, Beta," the new figure asked, his voice retaining an almost eerie monotone.

Fiver let out a strangled laugh, "Come on 627, have a heart," he joked, "I was just talking with-,"

"And you nearly told her who we are," 627 shot back, irritation creeping into his voice. Lifting his arm, he threw Fiver onto the ground, creating a loud _thud!_

"Come on," Fiver pleaded, his voice still rather light-hearted, all things considered, "It was an accident,"

"Your weak," 627 said, lifting Fiver onto his feet, "You let your guard down for one minute, and you nearly give away secret information," Fiver grinned. 627 remained stone-faced.

"You can be a real heartless, skirt-wearing son-of-a-bitch sometimes," Fiver replied casually, "You know that?"

627 wound his hand back and delivered a hard punch to Fiver's chest knocking him to the ground while simultaneously knocking the wind out of him. Walking towards him, 627 delivered a harsh kick to the prone boy's stomach.

"It's called a kilt," 627 said, the slight irritation in his voice turning to one of muffled anger.

He brought his foot up to deliver another kick to the coughing Fiver, but a harsh voice cut him off.

"Ranger," the voice cut through the air like a knife through butter, "That's enough," Immediately, all eyes turned to the source of the voice, a tall, middle-aged man wearing a gray gown that signified his previous state of sleep. Still, he carried an air of authority about him that rivaled that of most of Beacon's teachers. He nodded and began striding towards the two boys, both of whom had stopped what they were doing as they looked towards the man.

"627," he began, turning to face the standing boy, "While your concern for secrecy is appreciated, we do require that 555 be able to fight tomorrow, so it'd be best to not kick him again,"

"Yes, sir," 627 responded promptly, not moving from the spot.

The man nodded and turned towards Fiver, his voice taking on a slightly harsher tone, "As for you," he delivered a small kick to the prone boy, silently commanding him to stand. Fiver scrambled to his feet before turning to face the man giving his orders, "You'd do well to not reveal secrets to outsiders," he tilted his head towards Ruby as he said that, "and to avoid antagonizing your Alpha,"

"Sorry sir," Fiver said, head bowed in what seemed like shame.

The man turned to face Ruby, who shook her head as she realized she had been staring, "Young lady," he said, his voice suddenly calm and gentle, "I believe you have seen whatever it is you came to see, so would you please leave us, and not mention what you saw here?" While he phrased it like a request, the man's tone made it clear that he was giving an order.

"Uhh... yes sir!" Ruby replied quickly running off towards her dorm. She had no intention of hanging around that group of oddballs again. As she ran, her mind ran with a million questions. Did they really call themselves by numbers? What's with the whole ranger thing? And what was with the Alpha-Beta thing?

Arriving at her dorm room, Ruby quickly unlocked the door, slipping in to find the rest of her team already there and sitting on their beds.

"Hey Ruby," her sister Yang called out, jumping down from her bunk, "Where have you been?"

Ruby glanced over at her other two teammates, both of whom wore the same curious expression Yang had. Sighing, she began to explain the events of the night.

"I think I've just met our competition,"

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**A/N: And that was Chapter 1 folks. Reviews are welcome, good or bad (I'm not going to get much better if I don't know what I'm doing wrong). Next chapter were getting to the tournament, so stay tuned.**


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